A week after capturing the first Canada West title in team history,
the Huskies advanced past the opening round of the national
tournament for the first time in their fifth all-time appearance.
Saskatchewan played in the semifinals in 1986 but at the time the
tourney was a four-team affair, and the Huskies dropped their two
duels.

Saskatchewan gets back on the floor Saturday at 7 p.m. (TSN2
– tape delay to 10 p.m.) against the winners of
Friday’s last quarter-final between No. 1 Carleton and No. 8
UQAM. Calgary and UBC will face off at 5 p.m. in the early semi
(TSN2).

Ontario finalist Windsor resumes play at 1:30 p.m. on the
consolation side of the draw.

The Huskies, who led 24-12 after the first quarter, 44-27 at
halftime and 65-53 after 30 minutes, were up by as much as 22
points in the second half and trailed only once in the game, when
Windsor scored the first point of the night.

But the Lancers mounted a furious comeback in the fourth quarter
when they outscored their Saskatoon rivals 15-6 and had seven
chances to tie the match in the final 1:51, only to miss as many
three-point shots. The last opportunity came at the buzzer when
Andre Smyth’s desperate attempt from centre court missed to
the left.

“We just couldn’t make shots in the second half,”
said Saskatchewan head coach Greg Jockims, whose troops shot 19%
from the field (4-21) in the final 20 minutes to finish the contest
with a 31% success rate (18-58). “It’s good to get
through the first game. Tomorrow we’ll be more
relaxed.”
“Defensively we really set the tone in the first half. We
attacked them and got foul opportunities.”

“I’m proud of our team but at the end of the day
it’s still a loss. And it leaves a bitter taste. Turnovers
and missed foul shots cost us the game,” said Windsor head
coach Chris Oliver, whose team turned the ball over 16 times and
missed 10 of 21 attempts from the charity stripe.

“Being down 17 is not unusual for us, so coming back was
not a surprise. I really appreciate the character of this
team,” added Oliver.

Showron Glover, a guard from Fresno, California who led the nation
in scoring this year with 28.1 points per outing, paced the winners
with 16 points, including 12 on 13 trips to the free throw
line.

Fifth-year guard Michael Linklater of Saskatoon was named
Saskatchewan player of the game after he amassed 11 points and
eight rebounds. Sophomore Nolan Brudehl of Saskatoon added 11
points, while fifth-year forward Troy Gottselig of Findlater,
Sask., had 10.

Both teams not having made it to the CIS championship last year
started the first quarter off rusty and unable to make perimeter
shots. They quickly realized that shots weren’t falling and
took their chance in the paint, attacking the basket hard and
attracting foul calls early.

Glover got his first two fouls of the game early, giving the
Huskies no option but to bench him. The Huskies continued to be an
offensive threat without Glover and started pulling away from the
Lancers.

The Lancers struggled to make baskets drop, missing everything
from long threes to easy bunnies. Kuon was not looking his best,
missing all his shots in the first quarter and looking gassed early
in the game.

The excitement picked up halfway through the quarter as both
teams started to hit some shots from beyond the arc. For the
Lancers, it was rookie Lien Phillip of St. Mark’s, Grenada,
who put up some points from within the paint with a couple of nice
hook shots.

With 16 seconds remaining in the quarter, the ball in Husky
territory and Jockims yelling at his team to keep the ball for one
last shot, the Huskies managed to get a nice drive and dish play by
veteran Linklater for an easy bucket. On the baseline inbounds
play, Glover stole the ball from the Lancers and put up an easy
layup to allow the Huskies to double Windsor in points going into
the second quarter.

The second quarter started with the momentum in the
Huskies’ favour and would continue to the halftime buzzer.
The Lancers initially played sloppy on the offensive and defensive
end, creating turnovers and giving the Huskies transition
opportunities while at the same time unable to put a dent in the
Huskies’ lead.

As the quarter was winding down the Lancers developed a chip on
their shoulders, stepping up defensive play and not letting the
Huskies get any uncontested looks. But at the end of the quarter it
would again be the Huskies on top, outscoring the Lancers 20-15 and
finishing the first half of play with a 44-27 lead.

Coming out of the halftime break, the Lancers had a chance to
regroup, fighting the Huskies shot for shot in the opening minutes
of the third quarter. Kuon came out strong hitting back-to-back
threes, but the Huskies exploited his over aggressiveness on
defence getting him in foul trouble. With only minutes into the
quarter Kuon, the only player to be able to make anything happen
for the Lancers, sat down with four fouls. But Smyth took his spot
and hit back-to-back threes to get the Lancers within 15 points
before the Huskies took a time out. Windsor picked up the pace on
the offensive end showing a slight momentum shift. The Lancers were
not ready to hang up their hats and call it a game, slowly chipping
away at Saskatchewan’s lead.

The fourth quarter started with a momentum shift in the
Lancers’ favour. With Kuon back on the floor the Lancers
picked up the pace and ran the floor in transition. Windsor was
less tentative, jumping on every loose ball and fighting in
desperation. Despite missing shots, the Lancers were persistent on
the offensive glass getting second and third opportunities and
bringing it to within five points with half a quarter left to play.

Windsor’s hustle was rewarded as they closed the gap to
within one point in the last two minutes of play. Saskatchewan on
the other hand could not make shots drop all quarter but would hit
a clutch shot to increase the lead to three with 14 seconds
remaining in the game.

Saskatchewan played a more consistent game than the Lancers did
giving them the early advantage. The momentum shift in the fourth
quarter was too late as the Huskies had built up a lead too
significant to catch up to. Kuon’s return in the fourth was
the difference-maker for the Lancers.

NOTES: Saskatchewan extended its winning streak to 11 straight
games and has won 15 of 16 since early January... Three Canada West
teams will play in the semifinals of the championship for the sixth
time in history (2010, 1996, 1994, 1989, 1987, 1980) and for the
first time since 1996 when Brandon, Alberta and UBC reached the
Final Four, along with Toronto... The OUA had sent at least two
teams to the semis each of the past three years...